


And This Is How We Met

by Snapbaeks



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: M/M, fake dating au, jongin is ridiculous
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-15
Updated: 2016-11-15
Packaged: 2018-08-31 02:41:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,118
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8560207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snapbaeks/pseuds/Snapbaeks
Summary: When Jongin is invited to his ex-boyfriend's wedding, he does the only thing he can think to do, ask his new neighbor to come as his boyfriend, his pretend boyfriend. fake dating!au





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [carpesoo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/carpesoo/gifts).



> The biggest thank you I can muster to my darling, O, for being pretty much the sole reason I was able to finish this on time. Thanks for your encouragement and your help and for putting up with my several break downs as the deadline grew closer. You're the best. Many kisses.
> 
> Originally written for carpesoo in perfectedart.

“Monggu, please,” Jongin tugs on the leash in his hand, balancing two bags of groceries on one hip while he struggles to fit the small key in his mail box. Monggu, Jongin’s over excited poodle, responds with a shrill bark and another yank on the leash. Jongin curses under his breath.

The building’s front door opens, which only further excites Monggu, who runs circles around Jongin’s legs, tangling him in his leash.

“Need help?” Jongin turns toward the sudden voice where he sees the guy he recognizes as his new neighbor. He’s dressed much the same as he was the first time Jongin had met him, in an oversized hoodie and slim fitting jeans, his light brown hair falling into his eyes. He looks young.

“Um, no that’s okay, I’ve got it.” Monggu chooses that moment to give the leash another good tug and Jongin loses his footing, nearly dropping his groceries, before righting himself.

“Are you sure about that?” The boy’s mouth slips into a grin as he takes a step toward Jongin. “Hand me something.”

Jongin lets the boy take the bags of groceries from him and bends over to untangle himself. “You’re going to be the end of me,” he says to Monggu, scooping him off the floor and tucking him under his arm as he opens his mailbox and gathers the various envelopes and advertisements inside. He turns toward his neighbor. “Thank you. Baekhyun, right?” He remembers the boy’s name from the note and the batch of cookies he had left for Jongin the day after he’d moved in. Jongin had thought it was cute. Usually it’s the other way around, the long time resident leaving a welcome gift for the new neighbor. It warmed Jongin to him immediately.

“That’s me.” Baekhyun’s grin widens and Jongin notices how straight and white his teeth are and how handsome he is with them all on display like that. Monggu wiggles in his arms.

“I’m Jongin.”

“Nice to meet you, Jongin.”

Baekhyun follows Jongin up the stairs and into his apartment, setting the bags of groceries on his kitchen counter as Jongin sets Monggu down and fills his dish with fresh food and water. Baekhyun wanders from the kitchen into the open living room, looking around at his surroundings like a curious child. “Looks pretty much the same as my place. Just a little bit more lived in.” Jongin is slightly embarrassed by the state of his apartment. It’s not _messy_ \- certainly not _dirty_ \- but it’s cluttered, and there are volumes of manga and small figurines everywhere. Some would say Jongin is too old for any of that. He follows Baekhyun as he walks over to the shelf in the corner of the living room, picking up one of his _One Piece_ figurines and turning it over in his hands. They’re nice hands, Jongin thinks, absently. “I recognize this guy. Chanyeol, my friend, he loves this anime. I’ve seen a few episodes but it’s not really my thing. I’m more into gaming.”

“Oh.” Jongin isn’t used to having people in his apartment, looking at all of his things, and he’s thrown off. It’s usually just Kyungsoo, Jongin’s best friend, who’s known him for years. He’s comfortable with Kyungsoo. Baekhyun makes him feel nervous, vulnerable.

Baekhyun carefully places the figurine back onto the shelf, letting his fingers trace the spines of the books on the shelf above. He stops on a volume of Ouran High School Host Club. “This one I’ve seen!” He says with excitement. “My friend Soojung made me watch this with her. It’s actually pretty good.” He pulls the book from the shelf, flipping through it with a grin. Jongin is amazed and a little taken aback by how comfortable Baekhyun has made himself in a stranger’s home.

“You can borrow it if you want,” Jongin offers when Baekhyun stops to read a page that has caught his attention. 

Baekhyun looks up at him, his smile warm and sincere. “Thanks. I think I will.” He tucks the book under his arm, letting his eyes sweep over Jongin’s apartment. They land on Monggu, who has jumped up onto the sofa and is watching them, his tail wagging. “Your dog is adorable,” he says, walking over to the couch and plopping himself down, picking up the dog and putting him into his lap. Monggu pants happily.

Jongin just stares at him. He’d never be able to make himself so at home in a stranger’s apartment, and he can’t say he’s not a little bit uncomfortable, but he’s also intrigued, and he sits next to Baekhyun on the couch. “His name is Monggu. He’s a pain in the ass.”

Baekhyun gasps in mock shock. “Not this little angel.” He scratches Monggu behind the ears and kisses the top of his nose. “Don’t listen to him, you’re adorable.”

“You’re welcome to borrow him, too, if you want.” Jongin laughs, and Baekhyun laughs with him - a hiccuping laugh that has his eyes squeezing into crescents. It makes Jongin feel warm.

“I like you, Jongin,” Baekhyun declares suddenly, and Jongin isn’t sure what he’s done to make Baekhyun decide that so quickly.

“Um. Thank you?”

Baekhyun’s nose crinkles. “You’re cute.”

Heat creeps into Jongin’s cheeks and he runs his hands over his face. Baekhyun flusters him. “I should put my groceries away.”

“Oh, right.” Baekhyun removes Monggu from his lap, placing him back onto the cushion beside him. “I kind of just barged in and made myself right at home, didn’t I? I’m sorry about that.”

“No it’s okay. Don’t worry about it.” They stand and Jongin walks with him to the front door. “Thanks for your help,” Jongin says as he opens the door.

“No problem.” Baekhyun offers his hand and Jongin shakes it. It’s soft, but his grip is firm. “It was nice to meet you, Jongin. Don’t be a stranger, you know where I live.” He gives Jongin one more toothy grin, and then disappears into the hallway.

Jongin returns to the kitchen, picking up the pile of mail and flipping through it. It’s mostly bills and a few fliers advertising sales at the nearby grocery. He’s about to toss the pile aside when a small black envelope, addressed in meticulous golden calligraphy, catches his eye. He turns it over in his hand, sliding his finger under the flap to open it and he pulls out the small card inside.

You are cordially invited to celebrate the union of Zhang Yixing and Kim Jongdae on March 30, 2017 

Jongin stares at the card in his hand, his heart lodged somewhere near his throat and his stomach down near his feet. He sits down in one of the stools at his kitchen counter, his legs feeling weak. Yixing, his ex-boyfriend, is getting married.



“Did you know?” Jongin stares at Kyungsoo across the table. He’d called his best friend as soon as the initial shock had worn off and Kyungsoo had rushed right over.

Kyungsoo looks down at his hands. “I did.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?!” Jongin is starting to feel frantic again.

“He said he was going to call you and tell you himself. He even asked for your number and everything.”

“Well he didn’t.”

“I’m sorry Jongin. Are you okay?”

“I don’t know. It’s weird.” Jongin runs his hands through his hair. “Why does he want me there, anyway? Isn’t that weird? This is so _weird_ Kyungsoo.”

“It is kind of weird, but you know how important you were to him.” Kyungsoo reaches across the counter and covers Jongin’s hand with his own.

“Should I go?”

“Only if you want to.”

“What would _you_ do?”

“I honestly have no idea, Jongin.”

“You are absolutely no help.” Jongin pouts. “At least I have a few months to figure it out.”



Jongin has just gotten home from a long day at the office. He’s already walked Monggu and he’s ready for a beer and then bed, when there’s a knock at his door.

When he opens the door, Baekhyun is standing there with a big grin and a book tucked under his arm.

“Baekhyun, hi. Do you want to come in?”

“No, thanks. I just wanted to return this.” He holds out the book he’d borrowed a few days prior and Jongin takes it from him, bowing politely. He expects Baekhyun to go back to his apartment but he just stands there in the doorway, sucking on his bottom lip.

“Did you need something else?”

“I was supposed to have company tonight, but he canceled on me.” He frowns and Jongin doesn’t like the way it looks on his face.

“I’m sorry.”

“Well, I cooked all this food, and there’s only one of me, so I was wondering if you wanted to come help me eat it?” He looks at Jongin expectantly and his eyes are so soft and his lips are pushed out in a little pout and Jongin feels helpless to resist him.

“Give me a few minutes?”

“Yeah, okay, great!” Baekhyun’s mouth spreads into a smile that lights up his entire face and makes Jongin feel a little weak on his feet. This might be a bad idea.



The interior of Baekhyun’s apartment is mostly identical to Jongin’s, but it’s sparse. He probably hasn’t had the chance to unpack everything yet. There are still a few boxes stacked in the corner of the living room and next to them is a keyboard. “You play?” Jongin asks as he helps Baekhyun carry food from the kitchen to the small dining area.

“Yeah.”

“I’ve never heard you.”

“I play with headphones. So as not to disturb the neighbors.”

“How considerate.”

“I try.”

Baekhyun hadn’t been lying when he said he’d made a lot of food. It’s more than Jongin thinks he can eat, but it’s delicious, and Jongin’s impressed that Baekhyun made it all himself.

They eat in near-silence, save for the small noises of satisfaction Baekhyun makes as he stuffs his mouth with food. Jongin doesn’t usually do well with silence when in the company of strangers, too worried about coming across as boring, but something about Baekhyun makes him feel comfortable. It’s Baekhyun who breaks the silence as he scoops more rice into his bowl. “So tell me about yourself, Jongin.”

Jongin swallows his mouthful of vegetables and washes it down with a sip of beer. “There’s not much to tell.”

Baekhyun’s brow furrows, the corners of his mouth pulling down. “Sure there is. All I know about you is that you have a dog and you like anime. There’s got to be more to you than that.”

Jongin thinks there’s actually not a whole lot more to him than that, but that sounds a little pathetic, so he tells Baekhyun about his job at a small advertising firm where he’s been working for the past 5 years. It’s nothing glamorous, but he enjoys it enough. He talks about his family, and Baekhyun laughs heartily as Jongin tells him all about his niece’s toddler antics. It’s odd, Jongin thinks, how easily he is able to open up to Baekhyun. Baekhyun listens with interest, asking questions that spark a new thread of conversation when Jongin thinks he’s run out of things to talk about, and interjecting stories of his own. 

Jongin learns that Baekhyun is actually 27, the same age as Jongin, despite looking so young. _I get that all the time_ he’d said with a laugh when Jongin had responded with a look of surprise to Baekhyun’s age. 

Baekhyun works at a local bookstore and plays small gigs on weekends to supplement his income. “I can play something for you now if you’d like.” Baekhyun says when Jongin expresses an interest in coming to hear him play sometime.

“Sure, okay.”

Baekhyun beams at him and Jongin follows him into the living room where he takes a seat on the sofa while Baekhyun turns on his keyboard. Jongin sinks back into the cushions, stretching his legs out in front of him and linking his hands on his stomach. He’s sated from dinner and slightly buzzed from the few beers he drank and he closes his eyes as Baekhyun begins to play. Jongin recognizes the song as a ballad he’s heard a few times, though he doesn’t know the title or the original singer. When Baekhyun begins to sing, goosebumps break out over Jongin’s skin. His voice is beautiful, smooth and rich and buttery and Jongin lets it wash over him.

He doesn’t realize that he’d fallen asleep until Baekhyun shakes him gently, an amused smile on his lips. Jongin sits up, feeling mortified that he’d fallen asleep on Baekhyun’s couch in the middle of him playing a song for him. “Shit, I’m really sorry, Baekhyun. I wasn’t sleeping for long, was I?” He rubs his eyes.

“Just a few minutes,” Baekhyun laughs. “And don’t worry about it. I take it as a complement that my voice could lull you to sleep.”

Jongin’s sure his face is red with how much his cheeks are burning. “Really, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be silly. It’s kind of late, anyway, I don’t blame you.”

Jongin looks up at the clock hanging above the television. It’s after 2am. He hadn’t even realized how long they’d been talking. He groans as he realizes he has to wake up in 4 hours for work. “I should go home. Early day tomorrow.” He scrubs his hands over his face. “I’m fucked.”

Baekhyun laughs beside him. “I’m sorry for keeping you up past your bedtime.” Baekhyun picks a piece of lint off of Jongin’s pants, his fingers lingering a moment before he retracts his hand. “But I’m glad you came over.” Jongin’s skin tingles.

“Me too,” he yawns, belatedly covering his mouth with the back of his hand.

“Get yourself to bed, Jongin.” Baekhyun stands, taking Jongin’s hand and tugging him up off the couch. They’re close once Jongin is on his feet and Baekhyun’s eyes shine as he looks up at Jongin’s face. Baekhyun is really so handsome and Jongin feels a small fluttering in his belly. He takes a step back. He can’t have that.

“Goodnight, Baekhyun.”



“You look like shit.”

“Thanks, Soo.” Jongin shrugs off his jacket, hanging it on the hook by the door, and he flops down into his chair. “You always know how to make a guy feel great.”

“Long night?” Kyungsoo hands Jongin a to-go cup of hot chocolate from the cafe below their office, and Jongin takes it gratefully.

“Yeah, but not in a bad way.”

Kyungsoo quirks an eyebrow.

“I had dinner with my new neighbor.” Jongin takes a sip of his hot chocolate, hissing when it burns his tongue. “Ended up hanging out there until like 2 in the morning.”

“Oh?”

“I was surprised, too.” He takes the lid off his cup, blowing gently to cool the beverage. The steam warms his cheeks that are still cold from his morning commute. 

“Is this the one that made himself at home in your apartment?”

“The very same one.” 

“Look at you, making friends.” 

“He’s dangerous.” Jongin groans into his hot chocolate, remembering the way his heart had skipped a beat when Baekhyun had been standing so close and the way his skin had tingled under Baekhyun’s touch.

Kyungsoo eyes him cautiously. “Maybe if you stopped avoiding everyone you deemed dangerous you might just find yourself a boyfriend and settle down.”

“Kyungsoo,” Jongin warns. He doesn’t want to go down this path again. They’ve discussed Jongin’s failure at relationships enough for Jongin’s lifetime.

Kyungsoo sighs. “Right. I’m sorry. You know I’m just looking out for you, right?”

“I do.”



Jongin gets a phone call from an unknown number a few days later. His stomach twists when he hears Yixing’s sweet lilting voice on the other end.

“Jongin, hi.”

“Hi.”

“How are you?”

He’s not sure what makes him do it, but he feels the need to impress Yixing. He doesn’t want Yixing to think of him as the loser he used to date who never moved on with his life. “I’ve been great!” He says, wincing at how phony it sounds to his own ears. Hopefully Yixing doesn’t notice. “And obviously you have too, congratulations.”

“Oh, you’ve gotten the invitation then.”

“Yeah. It came last week.”

“I was hoping to get to you before the invitation, but you know how absent-minded I can be. I’m sorry about that.”

“It’s fine.” Jongin’s mouth feels dry. “I’m really happy for you, Yixing.”

“Thank you, Jongin.” There’s a beat of silence and Jongin feels anxious and awkward and he’s about to end the conversation when Yixing starts talking. “How are things? You’re still at the ad firm, right?”

“Yeah. Got promoted.”

“Congratulations, Jongin! That’s wonderful.” Another awkward silence. “You seeing anyone?”

The question makes Jongin’s heart clench uncomfortably in his chest and he feels a bit sick. It’s a childish thing to do, but Jongin feels this _need_ to impress, so he lies. “I am, actually.”

“Oh, good. I’m happy you’ve found someone.”

“Me too. He’s pretty incredible, actually.” Jongin inwardly cringes at his lie, but now that he’s started, he finds it hard to stop. “We’ve been together for a while. I’m pretty happy.”

“You should bring him to the wedding. I’d love to meet him.”

“Of course.”

“What’s his name? So I can make a place card for him.”

Shit. Jongin panics, his eyes darting around his living room like that will help him come up with a name. They land on the manga he had leant to Baekhyun last week. “Baekhyun.”



As soon as Jongin hangs up the phone he calls Kyungsoo, relieved when he picks up on the second ring.

“I did something stupid.”

“Stupid how?”

Jongin runs a hand through his hair, flopping onto the couch and pulling Monggu into his lap.

“Yixing called.”

“Oh?”

“I don’t know why, but I felt this need to impress him, Soo.” He pulls his fingers through Monggu’s fur. “It’s so stupid, but I didn’t want him to know how sad my life is.”

“First of all,” Kyungsoo says and Jongin can hear him shifting in his chair, can picture him leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees and scold him as if they were in the same room. “Your life is not sad. You have a good job, Jongin. You have a really nice apartment and family and friends who adore you. You’ve come a long way since you and Yixing broke up, there’s no reason for you to feel ashamed.”

There is truth to what Kyungsoo says. He’d been in a bad place when things ended with Yixing, and it took him a long time to snap out of it, but eventually he did. He’s happy enough now, but still, it’s not the life he’d had in mind for himself, and he’s not about to get married, let alone dating anyone. 

“I can practically hear you trying to prove me wrong, but you know I’m right.”

Jongin sighs, slumping further into the couch. “Right or not, I still kind of told him I’m dating someone.”

“Okay…”

“And that I’d be bringing him to the wedding.”

“Jongin-“ It comes out as an exasperated sigh.

“I know, Soo. I told you it was stupid. I even gave him Baekhyun’s name for the place card.”

“Baekhyun? Your neighbor? Jongin why-?”

“I don’t know Soo, it just came out. I don’t know what to do about it.”

Jongin can hear Kyungsoo shifting again. He’s so restless when he’s thinking. “You can either ask Baekhyun to the wedding or tell Yixing the truth.”

“I don’t like either of those options,” Jongin whines.

“Do you want my opinion?”

“I called you didn’t I.”

“I think you should just ask Baekhyun.”

“I don’t want to date him, Soo. I don’t want to date anyone.”

“It doesn’t have to be a date, just ask him, Jongin.”

“Good idea, I can ask him to be my fake boyfriend.”

“That’s not what I said.”

“Thanks, Soo.”



Jongin’s heart pounds as he knocks on Baekhyun’s door. This is so stupid. Jongin is a grown man. He should be able to go to a wedding without a date, ex or not. And he most certainly doesn’t need to be taking his neighbor who he barely knows. He’s about to turn back toward his own apartment door and forget the whole thing, when Baekhyun’s door flies open.

“Jongin!” He pants. His skin is flushed, his shirt is askew and his hair is stuck to his forehead with sweat. Jongin must have caught him working out.

“Um.”

“Do you need something?”

“I um. Do you want to go to a wedding with me? You know, be my date? Not a real date but-”

“Baekhyun? Tell them you don’t want what they’re selling and get back here.”

Jongin looks past Baekhyun, toward what he is assuming is the other man’s bedroom, toward the deep disembodied voice drifting from the back of the apartment. A tall man emerges, wearing nothing but a pair of boxer briefs and holding a shirt in front of his crotch. Jongin’s brow furrows in confusion for a moment and then _oh_.

“Fuck, Baekhyun I’m sorry.” He looks at the tall man, shouting an apology to him, too, before bolting toward his own apartment and slamming the door after him.



It’s been about an hour since Jongin knocked on Baekhyun’s door and he’s finally started to feel less like crawling into a hole and never coming out. He’s lounging on the couch, watching an episode of Naruto, a bottle of his favorite beer in hand.

There’s a knock at the door.

Jongin knows it’s Baekhyun and he really doesn’t want to face him, so he just turns up the volume on his TV and pretends he doesn’t hear. The knocking grows louder and he can hear Baekhyun calling from the other side of the door. “Jongin please open up, I know you’re in there.”

Jongin decides that he’s acting kind of childish, so he gives in and gets up to answer the door. Baekhyun smiles at him, a soft and tentative smile. “Can I come in?”

Jongin doesn’t say anything, just takes a step back so Baekhyun can enter. He immediately walks to the couch and flops down and Jongin just stands in the doorway eyeing him cautiously. When neither of them says anything for a few moments, Jongin speaks up. “I’m sorry. About earlier, I didn’t-”

Baekhyun pats the couch next to him. “Sit,” he says, and Jongin does as he’s told. “You don’t have to apologize, Jongin you didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I don’t know, asking a man on a date when he’s in the middle of…” he looks down at his lap “you know. With his boyfriend-“

“I’m going to stop you right there,” Baekhyun interrupts. Jongin can tell he’s smiling and he looks up to meet Baekhyun’s eyes, which are shining and playful. “First of all, Chanyeol is not my boyfriend.”

“So you weren’t-“

“Oh we were,” he laughs. “We definitely were, but he’s not my boyfriend. We’re just friends.”

“Oh.” Jongin settles back into the couch, feeling a bit less mortified.

“So tell me about this wedding.”

“Forget it, it was a stupid idea anyway.”

“Who’s getting married?”

“Um. My ex?”

“Oh, that’s not what I was expecting.”

“Yeah. Well, I kind of told him that I was seeing someone.” Jongin’s cheeks are burning and he feels so stupid saying this out loud. “He asked for a name for the guest list and yours was the first one that crossed my mind, and it’s really stupid and I should have thought more before I-”

“So you want me to be your pretend boyfriend.” Jongin nods. “At your ex-boyfriend’s wedding.” Jongin nods again, boring a hole into the floor with his eyes, unwilling to look back up at Baekhyun.

“Told you it was stupid.”

“That actually sounds like a lot of fun!”

“What?” 

“I did something similar back in high school. My best friend, Soojung, I told you about her.” 

Jongin nods, “The one who likes Ouran.” 

“I’m surprised you remembered that, but yes, that one.” Baekhyun throws his arm over the back of the couch, shifting to face Jongin. “Anyway, Soojung is a lesbian and I, as you know, am gay. When we were in high school we didn’t want anyone to know so I pretended to be her boyfriend for two years. We had everyone convinced,” he says with a fond smile. “Our families, everyone at school. It was kind of fun.”

Jongin gapes at him. “You actually want to do this?”

“Sure, why not? I love a good challenge.”

“You’re serious?”

“Absolutely.” Baekhyun gives Jongin’s shoulder a light bump with his fist and he beams at him. “How convincing do we have to be?”



“I guess we need a story.” Baekhyun’s draped himself across Jongin’s kitchen island after helping Jongin clean up the dishes from dinner, his head resting on his outstretched arm.

“What do you mean?” Jongin opens the refrigerator, pulling out two bottles of beer and sliding one across the counter to Baekhyun, before taking the seat opposite him.

Baekhyun sits up and accepts the beer with a smile, twisting off the cap and taking a long sip. “How did we meet? When? Who made the first move, all that stuff. We can’t just make it up on the spot, we’ll both say something different.” 

“Um, well why not just use how we actually met?” Jongin doesn’t understand why this has to be so complicated. 

Baekhyun frowns at Jongin as if offended. “Jongin, this relationship can be _anything_ we want it to be, don’t you want to make it more interesting?”

“What did you have in mind?” 

“Something more romantic.” He rests his chin in his palm and purses his lips. “Something like…” He looks up at the ceiling, his brow furrowed in concentration. “OH!” He suddenly exclaims, pounding the counter with his fist and Jongin startles. “We met on vacation – some exotic location. You saw me at the hotel bar and asked me up to your room where we began a whirlwind love affair.” His eyes sparkle with excitement and Jongin thinks it’s kind of cute how enthusiastic he is. He almost feels bad dismissing the idea.

“That won’t work,” Jongin says and Baekhyun pouts. “He’d never believe that, because I’d never _do_ that.”

Baekhyun’s pout grows into a full-fledged frown, his forehead creasing, and nose crinkling and Jongin thinks he looks like an adorable child. “Hmmm, well how did you and Yixing meet?”

“In college.” Jongin remembers the first day of their Intro to Adobe Illustrator class with so much fondness. “He was so lost because the professor was speaking so quickly and he could barely keep up, so I offered to help him after class.” Jongin plays with the label on his beer bottle, peeling down the corner. “I think he had a crush on me kind of right away, but I told him I didn’t do relationships. He eventually wore me down. I didn’t want to fall in love with him, but he was so-” Jongin lets his sentence trail off. Talking about his relationship with Yixing, even the good parts, always manages to bring up the painful emotions he’d struggled with when it ended. 

There’s a beat of silence before Baekhyun speaks again. “So we’ll figure that part out later, then.” He lays his hand over Jongin’s, which startles Jongin a bit, but he doesn’t withdraw. It’s kind of nice. “How are you with affection?”

“It’s nice, I guess.” 

“I mean if I go to hold your hand at the reception or put my hand on your waist are you going to be surprised, or is it something natural for you.”

“I don’t know. It’s been a while.” Jongin’s naturally affectionate with his sisters and his niece, but outside of his family, it’s pretty much just Kyungsoo, and the thought of any physical affection between the two of them has Jongin laughing into his beer. “I think I’m gonna need some practice.”

“Then let’s practice. We’ll get you used to it.” Baekhyun gives Jongin a disarming grin and squeezes his hand. “I’m extremely touchy, you’ll be immune in no time.”



Jongin spends most of the next few weeks with Baekhyun when they’re not at work. Baekhyun cooks dinner for him on his nights off and Jongin’s belly and wallet are grateful. Jongin has always been a disaster waiting to happen in the kitchen. He eats a lot of takeout.

Baekhyun teaches Jongin how to play his favorite games, and Jongin is terrible at them, but Baekhyun is patient and despite Jongin’s inability to grasp the controls and his general lack of knowledge of video games, he enjoys spending the time with Baekhyun. 

Jongin is kind of amazed at how quickly he and Baekhyun had become friends. He’s not sure if it was lack of effort on his part or just few opportunities, but Jongin’s never found it easy to make friends. It’s different with Baekhyun, though. There’s something about him that makes Jongin feel at ease. He hasn’t even really thought of his time with Baekhyun as preperation for the wedding, he genuinely enjoys Baekhyun’s company and it seems to Jongin like Baekhyun feels the same.



Jongin feels nervous, which is ludicrous considering this is _not_ a real date. And yet his palms feel clammy and his stomach is somewhat unsettled as he knocks on Baekhyun’s door. It had been Baekhyun’s idea to go on a “real fake date.” _We should have some kind of idea what it would be like. To make it more convincing._ Jongin hadn’t found the necessity in it, but Baekhyun’s done this before. Jongin hasn’t, so he reluctantly agreed.

When Baekhyun greets him, Jongin is taken aback by how handsome he looks. He’s wearing a nice blue sweater – one that hugs his broad chest and accentuates his small waist – and a pair of slim, gray pants that doesn’t have holes in the knees. Jongin thinks he looks more his age like this and he quite likes it.

“If you keep staring like that I might think you like me for real.” Jongin tears his eyes away from Baekhyun’s muscular thighs to look up at him and there’s a playful, teasing smile on his lips.

“Sorry, you look nice. You don’t usually look this nice. I got surprised.” If Baekhyun notices the flush in Jongin’s cheeks, he has mercy on him and doesn’t mention it.

“Shall we go?”

“Lead the way.”

Baekhyun takes him to a sushi restaurant a few blocks from Jongin’s office. Jongin’s always wanted to try the place, but could never convince Kyungsoo to come with him. Baekhyun orders a large platter for both of them along with a bottle of soju and a serving of tonkatsu for them to share.

About halfway through the meal, Baekhyun gets a mischievous look on his face and Jongin is about to ask him what he’s up to when he feels Baekhyun’s foot running up the inside of his calf. He nearly chokes on his tuna roll.

“What are you doing?”

“Conditioning you.” Baekhyun grins around a mouthful of salmon and rice. “You need to act like you’re used to it. Don’t worry we’ll get there.”

Jongin pours himself another shot of soju and downs it quickly. Despite his best efforts, he’s really _very_ attracted to Baekhyun and he needs to put those thoughts out of his mind if he’s going to be able to do this.

“You alright?” Baekhyun’s head lilts to the side, a wrinkle forming in his brow.

“Fine.” Jongin says, willing himself to believe it.

“Good. Eat up, we’re going to my favorite bar after this.”

Jongin has a bad feeling about this.

Baekhyun’s favorite bar is a hole in the wall down a side street he’s never even heard of, despite it being mere minutes from their apartment building. The outside of the building is dingy, dirty brick with a flickering light above the entrance, but the inside is quite a bit cleaner, brighter, and Jongin relaxes. They take two stools at the bar and Baekhyun orders for them, two whiskeys on the rocks. Jongin’s not used to drinking whiskey, but he’d decided when the night began that he’d just follow Baekhyun’s lead.

The first sip burns his throat and he sputters, and Baekhyun claps him on the back. “Easy there. Small sips.”

“I didn’t even know this place existed.” Jongin says once he’s recovered.

“I don’t think I’d have ever found it myself,” Baekhyun says, leaning close into Jongin’s personal space. “Chanyeol works here.”

Jongin hates the unsettled feeling that forms in his gut at the mention of Chanyeol’s name. He has nothing to be jealous of. Besides, Chanyeol’s not even here right now. Jongin can just enjoy his time with Baekhyun and put Chanyeol out of his mind.

Jongin is looking down at the ring of condensation that has formed around his glass when Baekhyun scoots closer, resting his chin on Jongin’s shoulder and snaking his arm around Jongin’s waist. “Where’s your head?” he asks and Jongin shivers as Baekhyun’s breath tickles his ear.

Jongin turns to look at Baekhyun. His cheeks are pink and his lips are wet and Jongin feels an intense attraction to him. “I’m here,” he whispers, then kisses Baekhyun’s cheek. Baekhyun pulls away, looking stunned for a moment but then he’s smiling.

“There you go,” he says, bumping his forehead against Jongin’s. “That’s the way you do it. You’re a natural. I bet everyone in this bar thinks we’re really on a date.”

Jongin smiles, feeling more relaxed, and he wraps his own arms around Baekhyun’s waist, nuzzling into his neck. Baekhyun’s warmth seeps into Jongin’s skin and Jongin sighs. “Thank you,” he whispers into the crook of Baekhyun’s neck. “Thank you for doing this for me.”

Baekhyun presses a kiss to the top of Jongin’s head. “Of course.” He rests his hand at the nape of Jongin’s neck. “My pleasure.”

Maybe this won’t be so bad after all, Jongin thinks, squeezing Baekhyun’s waist.



Beakhyun had insisted that they needed a trial run, someone to test how convincing they are, and they’d invited Kyungsoo over to Baekhyun’s apartment for dinner. “We need you to be our guinea pig.”

Kyungsoo eyes them skeptically across the table. “And what does that entail?” 

“Just ask us questions and let us know how convincing we are.” Baekhyun grins.

Kyungsoo crosses his arms across his chest, leaning back in his chair. “How long have you two been together?” Jongin can tell Kyungsoo inwardly hates every second of this, but he’s grateful to his friend for cooperating.

“A year and a half,” they answer together and Baekhyun turns to Jongin and gives his best enamored look. “It’s been wonderful,” Baekhyun adds, reaching up to cup the back of Jongin’s neck, his thumb rubbing at Jongin’s hairline and Jongin’s breath catches in his throat. 

“Gross.”

“C’mon, Soo. Humor us.” 

“I don’t understand why all this is necessary in the first place.” Kyungsoo says, leaning forward and crossing his arms on the table. “I’m sure no one is going to even think twice about the authenticity of your relationship. It’s a wedding. Everyone is going to be drinking and eating and dancing. No one’s going to grill you.”

“Maybe not,” Jongin’s had the same thought himself. “But I just want to be prepared. I’m sure you remember Yixing’s aunt.”

Kyungsoo laughs. “You’ve got a point.”

“What about Yixing’s aunt?” Baekhyun asks and when Jongin’s response is to laugh, Baekhyun pouts grabbing Jongin by the elbow and shaking him. He’s such a kid sometimes and it’s one of the many things that endears him to Jongin. “What’s so funny?”

Jongin drapes his arm over the back of Baekhyun’s chair, rubbing an appeasing thumb over his shoulder. “She’s Yixing’s only relative in Korea, so when we were in college he lived with her.”

“Oh.” Baekhyun leans into Jongin’s side and it’s a welcome weight. “Is she nosy?”

“You could say that.” Jongin answers with a chuckle. 

“I only met her a few times and she wanted to know everything about me.” Kyungsoo supplies from across the table. 

“Good thing we’ve go you to help us prepare, then.”



“No boyfriend tonight?” Kyungsoo asks as Jongin slides into the booth across from him, beer in hand.

Jongin rolls his eyes as he shrugs his jacket off his shoulders and piles it on the bench next to him. “He’s with Chanyeol tonight. I’m glad you asked me out for drinks, they get kind of loud sometimes.”

Kyungsoo looks over his glasses at Jongin, one eyebrow quirking up. “That’s not weird for you?”

“It’s kind of gross,” Jongin reaches across the table to pluck one of Kyungsoo’s fries off his plate and pop it into his mouth. “But it’s not _weird_. He’s not my real boyfriend, Soo. Are we really that convincing?” He grins at Kyungsoo as he chews.

“Honestly, Jongin, I think he likes you for real.” Jongin pulls a face. “And I think you might like him, too, although you’re too stubborn to admit it.”

“We really must be convincing.” Jongin tries to appear unaffected, but Kyungsoo’s observation pushes uncomfortably on his chest. 

“Jongin.”

“Okay, maybe I have a little crush, but can you blame me? He’s so cute and _clingy_. I have fun with him.” He pours his beer into an empty glass, taking a quick sip before setting the glass back down on the table.

“So why don’t you stop pretending and just be real, actual boyfriends?” 

“Because I don’t want a boyfriend.” 

Kyungsoo sighs and gives Jongin a sympathetic look. “I get why you’re so hesitant to jump into a relationship again, Jongin, I really do.” If there’s anyone who knows what Jongin went through when Yixing ended things, it’s Kyungsoo. He’s Jongin’s oldest and dearest friend, had been the one to help pull him out of his post-break up funk, which lasted about a year longer than it should have. 

“It’s just not worth it.” Jongin runs his thumb through the condensation that’s collected on his glass. “I’m happy enough.”

“I just think it’s a little funny that you say you don’t want a boyfriend and yet you’ve put so much effort into faking this thing with Baekhyun. Don’t you think if you were really happy alone you wouldn’t care so much?” Kyungsoo’s words weigh on his chest and he slumps against the back of the booth. “Just my thoughts,” Kyungsoo adds when Jongin doesn’t say anything, “doesn’t mean I’m right.”

Kyungsoo has a point, but Jongin would rather not think about that right now. He takes a long drink from his glass. It sits heavy in his stomach.



It’s the night before the wedding and Jongin is a wreck. He’s been tossing and turning in his bed for hours and at this point he thinks he might as well just give up on the prospect of sleep. He pulls his phone off his nightstand and types a message to Baekhyun.

_u awake?_

_can’t sleep?_

_too nervous :/_

_want me to come over?_

Baekhyun is in his pajamas when Jongin answers the door and he gives Jongin a sleepy smile before stepping inside. 

“Do you mind hanging out in my room?” Jongin asks, shivering. “It’s so cold in here and I have a really warm comforter on my bed. Or is that weird?”

Baekhyun smiles, “Not weird. You are my boyfriend of nearly two years after all.”

Baekhyun follows Jongin back to his bedroom, standing awkwardly by the bed before Jongin pulls down the comforter and climbs in, patting the space next to him. Baekhyun seems to consider for a moment before climbing in after him, immediately snuggling against Jongin’s side. His toes are cold as they press into Jongin’s ankle, but Jongin feels hot from the sudden close proximity.

“Relax, Jongin. I’m not going to try anything, just trying to share some body heat. Do you even have heat in this apartment?”

“Trying to keep the bills down.” Jongin says, wrapping his arm around Baekhyun’s shoulders. 

They lay in comfortable silence for a few minutes and Jongin thinks that Baekhyun has drifted off to sleep when he speaks. “What happened with you and Yixing?” He asks, playing with the hem of Jongin’s t-shirt. Jongin knew this question would come up sooner or later, and he’d thought that it would make him uncomfortable, but something about Baekhyun makes him feel so relaxed – so open. It’s a thought that scares him a little – he’s supposed to be guarded, to keep himself from getting too close and getting hurt – but he pushes that thought to the back of his mind and focuses on the even sound of Baekhyun’s breathing and the weight of him against his side.

“We were so good for so long until suddenly we weren’t.” He rubs his thumb in small circles between Baekhyun’s shoulder blades. “He had a lot of dreams and aspirations and I… I think I was holding him back.”

“That’s a horrible thing to tell someone.” Baekhyun curls his fingers in the fabric of Jongin’s shirt.

“He didn’t say it, but he didn’t have to.”

“I’m sorry, Jongin.” 

“It was a long time ago, Baekhyun, I’m over it.” It feels a bit like a lie. Jongin is over _Yixing_ yes, but the damage is still there.



They’d fallen asleep in Jongin’s bed sometime after 3am and when Jongin woke to Baekhyun’s sleeping face in the morning, some part of him thought he’d like to get used to that. It was then that Jongin decided to forget his silly crush on Baekhyun. He only had one more day of this whole charade and then he could put some distance between them. It was better that way.

They’d spent a lazy morning together, eating breakfast on the couch while watching TV. Baekhyun had napped on his shoulder while Jongin flipped through the channels, never quite settling on any one show. 

At noon, Baekhyun had gone back to his apartment to get ready, and when he had returned an hour later, Jongin’s heart skipped a beat at how handsome he looked in his black suit with his hair swept up and off his forehead. 

Now, they’re standing in Jongin’s room, Baekhyun helping him with his tie. “Stop fidgeting,” Baekhyun chides, straightening Jongin’s collar.

“I can’t.” Jongin bounces on the balls of his feet, pulling at the hem of his jacket.

“It’ll be fine.” Baekhyun puts his hands on Jongin’s shoulders, giving a gentle squeeze, before letting his hands trail down the length of Jongin’s arms and he smiles reassuringly. “We’re going to have fun. It’s not like we’re going to be interrogated, Jongin.”

“I know, that’s not.” He takes a deep breath. “I haven’t seen him in over two years. And now he’s getting married. I’m over him, but-“

“I understand.” Baekhyun hands slip from Jongin’s wrists to his hands and he slips his fingers between Jongin’s. “I’m here.”

“Thank you.”



The ceremony is beautiful. When Yixing had appeared Jongin felt a brief moment of unease, but the moment he saw Yixing’s face light up at the sight of Jongdae, he felt nothing but fondness and almost relief. Beside him, Baekhyun slipped his hand into Jongin’s, giving a gentle squeeze. This is going to be easier than Jongin had anticipated.

Yixing looks absolutely head over heels, all dimpled smiles and quiet giggles and Jongdae returns each smile with one of his own. They look beautiful together. Jongin is truly happy for them and he lets himself relax. Baekhyun notices, beaming at Jongin and readjusting his grip on Jongin’s hand to lace their fingers together. It’s a gesture Jongin is used to at this point, but somehow it feels different, making Jongin’s fingertips tingle. 

He watches the rest of the ceremony with a fond smile on his face and a pleasant, buzzing warmth in his chest. 

At the reception they’re seated at a table with a few of Yixing and Jongdae’s friends and coworkers. The couple seated to Jongin’s left introduce themselves as friends from Jongdae’s architecture firm and they make small talk until the food is served. No one really pries into their relationship, just asking surface questions like how they know the grooms and what they do for a living and Jongin is starting to feel silly for putting so much effort into trying to convince everyone when no one really seems to give them a second thought. He relaxes and enjoys his dinner, occasionally distracted by Baekhyun’s hand on his thigh or his fingers scratching at the back of his neck. 

They’ve finished their dinners, watching the guests try to execute the electric slide with varying levels of inebriation when Jongin is startled by a sudden loud voice behind him. “Jongin!” He whirls around in his chair, and his heart pounds in his chest as he sees Yixing’s aunt walking toward them, arms outstretched and a broad smile stretching her heavily lacquered lips. Baekhyun takes his hand, squeezing gently. “Jongin, Yixing told me you were coming and I just couldn’t wait to see you, come give me a hug.”

Jongin stands, giving her an awkward side hug and a polite bow. She makes herself at home in the chair that left abandoned for the dance floor and Jongin sits back down. “It’s good to see you, Ms. Zhang. I hope you’ve been well.”

“Oh of course I have.” She lets her eyes sweep over the reception hall, landing them on Yixing and Jongdae where they stand by one of the tables on the other end of the room, greeting the guests. “Don’t they look handsome together? I couldn’t be happier for them.” She returns her attention to Jongin, suddenly seeming to notice Baekhyun, seated silently beside him. “Oh, and who is this?”

“Byun Baekhyun, ma’am.” Baekhyun reaches across Jongin to shake her hand, bowing his head. “I’m Jongin’s boyfriend.” When he lets go of her hand, he rests his own on Jongin’s thigh, giving it a gentle squeeze.

Jongin had thought her smile couldn’t get any bigger, but he’d been wrong. “Oh my goodness, you two look so handsome together, what a beautiful pair.” She directs her gaze at Jongin. “I knew you’d find someone, Jongin. I always loved you and my Yixing together, you’re such a sweet boy.”

“Yes, he is.” Baekhyun says next to him, resting his chin on Jongin’s shoulder. His breath tickles Jongin’s ear, sending a shiver down his back. 

“Tell me how you met, I’d love to hear.”

“Jongin? Would you like to do the honors?”

Jongin’s throat feels dry and he reaches for his water. “Baekhyun plays the piano and sings beautifully,” he starts, feeling nervous. He looks at Baekhyun, who has leaned back in his chair, but his hand remains on Jongin’s thigh. Jongin covers it with his own. He looks back at Ms. Zhang. “I saw him play one night at this bar. He tried to buy me a drink afterwards but I didn’t let him.”

“Can you believe he kept turning me down?” Baekhyun’s smile is soft and easy and it helps Jongin to relax. He leans back in his chair, wrapping his arm around Baekhyun’s shoulders. 

“I can, actually.” Ms. Zhang laughs. “He did the same to Yixing.”

“But I was persistent, wasn’t I?” Baekhyun nudges Jongin’s side.

Jongin goes through the whole story, just as they’d rehearsed, telling stories of Baekhyun’s many attempts at getting Jongin to agree to a date, and Baekhyun interjects naturally. Jongin can see how charmed Ms. Zhang is with Baekhyun and he definitely doesn’t blame her.

“You two are really beautiful together.” She looks directly at Baekhyun “I can really see how much you love him.”

Jongin turns to look at Baekhyun, who is smiling fondly, and Baekhyun reaches up to brush Jongin’s hair off his forehead. He drags his thumb over Jongin’s cheek and his smile grows and Jongin thinks his eyes are almost sparkling. “I really do,” Baekhyun says, looking directly at Jongin and Jongin’s heart lurches in his chest. 

“Oh how adorable!” Ms. Zhang claps happily reaching out to pinch both of their cheeks at once. “Not to cut this short, but I promised my Xingie a dance and I’d like to do that before I’ve had too much to drink.” She laughs, a cackling laugh, patting Jongin’s cheek and then she’s off. 

“That went well.” Baekhyun smiles, playing with the collar of Jongin’s shirt. “You were not wrong about her, she is a character.” His knuckles bump Jongin’s jaw and Jongin’s skin tingles.

“Do you want to dance?” Jongin asks, covering Baekhyun’s hand with his own.

“I thought you’d never ask.”

Jongin leads Baekhyun to the dance floor and he’s immediately impressed by how well Baekhyun moves. After a few songs, Baekhyun’s loosened his tie and undone the top few buttons of his shirt, and there’s a thin sheen of sweat covering his collarbones. Jongin tries not to pay attention to it. 

Jongin is just beginning to relax when the DJ mentions it’s time to “slow it down.” He stands awkwardly for a moment, not sure whether to head back to the table or not, when Baekhyun pulls him close with hands fisting in the sides of his shirt and rests his head on Jongin’s shoulder.

Jongin’s stomach flips and he curses himself for letting himself be so affected by Baekhyun. He thought he’d put those feelings to bed, but they creep back in as Baekhyun’s hands flatten against his sides and slide up his back, underneath his suit jacket. His forehead nuzzles Jongin’s neck. Jongin feels like his skin is on fire, but he wraps his arms around Baekhyun and sways with him to the music. He tries to will his heart to slow down.

“Relax.” Baekhyun whispers, his lips grazing Jongin’s neck. 

“I think we have everyone convinced by now. You don’t have to do this anymore.”

Baekhyun lifts his head, smiling up at Jongin. “But I want to, I’m really enjoying myself.”

At this point, Jongin’s not sure if Baekhyun is referring to their little charade or if he genuinely wants to be here right now, dancing so closely with Jongin. Baekhyun’s fingers curl into the fabric of Jongin’s dress shirt at his waist and he stretches up and presses a soft, gentle kiss to Jongin’s lips. He lingers there for a beat before pulling away and Jongin exhales shakily, wanting to feel Baekhyun’s lips on his again, but not really sure if he should.

Baekhyun stares at him, searching his face, and there’s so much there in his eyes and Jongin can feel so much rising up within him and he opens his mouth to say something - _anything_ to break the tension, when he hears Yixing’s soft, cheerful voice.

“Sorry to break the mood.” He says with a warm smile. “I just wanted to come say hello.” He looks at Baekhyun. “And that the two of you are making me and Jongdae look bad with how mushy you are.”

Jongin lets go of Baekhyun and takes a step back, glad for the interruption. “Yixing, congratulations.” 

“It’s so good to see you,” Yixing says, wrapping Jongin in an enveloping hug. “I’m guessing this is Baekhyun.” He lets go of Jongin to shake Baekhyun’s hand and bow politely. “Thank you for coming.”

“Congratulations.” When Baekhyun drops Yixing’s hand he places his own on the small of Jongin’s back. “Thank you for inviting us, we’re really happy to be here.” He rubs his thumb over Jongin’s back and Jongin fights the urge to shiver. “I had the pleasure of meeting your aunt earlier.”

Yixing laughs, dimple forming in his cheek. “Oh no, I hope she was gentle with you.”

“She was lovely.”

“Baekhyun, do you mind if I cut in?” 

“Go ahead.” Baekhyun turns his hands over, palms up, in a gesture of offering. “I’ll be at our table,” he says to Jongin, leaving a warm kiss on his cheek.

Yixing wraps a strong arm around Jongin’s back, taking Jongin’s right hand in his left. “I really am so glad you came, Jongin,” he says after a few moments of gentle swaying. “I wasn’t sure you were going to, after how we left things.” Jongin doesn’t say anything, just looks down at their feet. “I was so worried about you back then.”

“It wasn’t good,” Jongin says, hating the scratchiness in his voice. “But I’m better now. I’m happy we came.” 

“I’m glad Jongin. I’m sorry for everything.”

Jongin is about to tell Yixing he doesn’t have anything to be sorry about, but he’s interrupted.

“Yixing!” Jongdae calls from beside the desert table. “They want us to cut the cake.”

“I have to go.” Yixing squeezes Jongin’s hand. “Catch me before you leave?” Jongin nods. “Enjoy yourselves.”

Jongin is left standing there with a heaviness in his chest. He’s not sure how long he stands there, his head reeling from his kiss with Baekhyun, from seeing Yixing again and being reminded of all of the feelings sadness and inadequacy he’d been trying so hard to forget. He doesn’t even notice that Baekhyun has joined him until he places a hand on Jongin’s back. “Are you okay, Jongin?”

“I need a drink,” he says, not even waiting for Baekhyun’s response. He walks back to the bar, ordering a whiskey on the rocks and downing it by the time Baekhyun joins him. 

“Jongin? Are you okay?” He runs his hand over Jongin’s back in a gesture Jongin is sure is meant to console him, but it just adds to the weight in his chest and he straightens. 

“I think I just need some air.”

Baekhyun looks concerned, his mouth pulling down at the corners. “Do you want me to come with you?”

“No, I’ll just be a minute.” Baekhyun doesn’t look convinced. “I’ll be fine, Baekhyun, I promise.” He forces a smile.

“Okay,” Baekhyun concedes. “I’ll be at the table.”

The air outside is cold and he’s grateful for his suit jacket. He takes a deep breath, trying to calm the rapid beating of his heart and clear his head. He closes his eyes and the image of Baekhyun stretching up to kiss him is all he can see. He’d looked so sincere and Jongin honestly doesn’t know how he feels about that. There’s a part of him that wants to explore his relationship with Baekhyun; to see if maybe there’s something more there than he’s let himself see, but that would mean opening his heart and letting Baekhyun and there’s that fear again – of getting hurt, not being enough, and it claws at his chest. He steps off the curb and hails a cab. He can’t do this right now.



Kyungsoo had scolded Jongin when he’d showed up at his door and told him about running off, but he’d softened immediately, wrapping Jongin in a rare, warm hug. He’d pulled a few blankets and pillows from the linen closet and made up the couch for Jongin, sitting with him as he tried to make sense of the mess in his head.

When he’d woken up the next morning, it was to several missed calls and texts from Baekhyun, each one more frantic than the last. Jongin had ignored his phone all day until Kyungsoo had told him how unfair he was being to Baekhyun, who hadn’t done anything wrong.

_sorry for worrying you. i think need some space to work through some stuff. i’m really sorry_



Jongin had thought that distance would make things easier. He’d convinced himself that the feelings he had for Baekhyun were just the result of spending so much time in each other’s, and the nature of that time spent together and that after some time apart, those feelings would fade into nothing.

But it’s been three weeks and Jongin _misses_ him. Baekhyun has respected Jongin’s request for space and left him alone, and Jongin is grateful for that respect, but it hurts. Jongin’s seen him in the hallway once since the wedding and Baekhyun had given him a sad smile, before disappearing into his apartment.

Jongin still thinks he’s doing the right thing, despite constant argument from Kyungsoo that this is, actually, the exact _wrong_ thing for Jongin and he needs to get over himself and make things right with Baekhyun. Jongin thinks he just needs a little more time.



Jongin stands on the platform as he waits for the next train home. He'd been held up at the office, scrambling to finish a mockup for a new client and he'd missed his usual train. It’s _cold_ today, especially for late April, and Jongin digs his hands into his pockets to warm them.

"Jongin?" Jongin turns toward the sudden voice and is met with Yixing's warm, dimpled smile. 

"Yixing, hi. You're back from your honeymoon?" Jongin inwardly cringes at himself. Obviously he's back.

"Just got back yesterday." He wraps his scarf tighter around his neck. "It's a lot colder here than in Thailand."

"Sorry I didn't come say goodbye, at the reception."

"Honestly, everything was such a blur, I hardly noticed. How is Baekhyun?"

Jongin looks down at his feet. "Oh, that didn't work out."

"I'm really sorry, Jongin. You two looked so happy."

"I think we're just good at pretending."

Yixing clicks his tongue, his head tilting to one side. "Nonsense.” His brow furrows. “That was some genuine love and happiness I saw. And my aunt couldn’t stop raving about how much she loved you two together. You forget that I know what a lovesick Jongin looks like.” He nudges Jongin’s arm with his shoulder, laughing playfully.

There's a pang in Jongin's chest. He really was so happy with Baekhyun. Has always been so happy in his presence. He frowns.

"Listen, Jongin. I don't know him, and I don't really even know you anymore. And I'm sure you don't want advice from me.” He brushes hair of his forehead with a gloved hand. “Feel free to tell me if I'm overstepping, but I think that maybe you two really had something special. I saw the way he looked at you like you were the only one in the room. I don't know what happened between you, but if it's not something unforgivable, I really think you should give it another shot. You deserve to be happy."

There's a tightness in Jongin's chest and he tries to give Yixing a small smile, but it feels pathetic. He wants to be happy, and he thinks that Baekhyun would make him very happy, but he's not so sure he can do the same for Baekhyun. "I don't know, Xing."

Yixing wraps his fingers around Jongin's wrist and gives a comforting squeeze. "You'll figure it out."

The low rumble of his train in the distance is Jongin’s queue to say goodbye and he gives Yixing a hug, promising to keep in touch. Yixing waves excitedly as he walks toward the exit, nearly colliding with a mother and her young children and Jongin laughs, realizing it’s been at least three weeks since he’s done that.

On the train, Yixing’s words replay in Jongin’s head and he can’t keep his mind off of Baekhyun. His warm smile and soft eyes and the way he makes Jongin want to open up. The thinks about how much he _misses_ him and he thinks maybe Kyungsoo was right. It’s time to get over himself and make things right.



Jongin’s hand shakes as he knocks on Baekhyun’s door. This all feels so familiar, and he starts to worry that maybe Baekhyun is busy with Chanyeol and maybe this is a bad idea. The door opens before he has a chance to change his mind.

“Jongin, hi.” Baekhyun looks like maybe he’d just woken up - eyes slightly puffy and little red indentations in his cheek. His hair is sticking up in several directions. Jongin thinks he looks beautiful, even like this.  
“I’m sorry if I woke you.” Jongin is surprised by how calm he sounds when his heart is in his throat and his stomach is in knots.

“No, it’s okay, come in.” Baekhyun takes a step back, opening the door a bit wider to allow Jongin inside. They stand awkwardly in the entryway, Jongin shifting his weight from foot to foot, playing with the hem of his shirt. “Do you want to sit down?”

“I want-“ Jongin has never really been good with words, so he thinks maybe it would be better to _show_ Baekhyun what he wants. He takes a step toward Baekhyun, reaching out and closing his fingers around Baekhyun’s slender wrist. Baekhyun lets Jongin tug him forward and he lets out a tiny gasp when Jongin’s hand comes up to cup his cheek. It’s soft under Jongin’s palm and so are Baekhyun’s eyes as they search his face. Jongin’s other hand finds Baekhyun’s hip and he leans forward, pressing his forehead to Baekhyun’s. Baekhyun’s hair tickles his cheek.

“Jongin,” Baekhyun whispers, his breath hot on Jongin’s face.

“I like you a lot, Baekhyun.” Jongin says before slowly closing the small distance between them, pressing his lips to Baekhyun’s. Just as he’s about to pull away a moment later, Baekhyun pushes forward, grabbing handfuls of Jongin’s shirt and deepens the kiss.

Jongin hadn’t realized just how badly he’d wanted to kiss Baekhyun again until this moment, with Baekhyun’s tongue sweeping over Jongin’s bottom lip and his hands sliding around to his back. "You're an idiot." Baekhyun says, grinning, when he pulls away a minute later. Jongin gapes at him. "What took you so long?"

"I'm sorry," is all Jongin can manage to say before Baekhyun is kissing him again, his hands dipping beneath the hem of Jongin's shirt to rest on his waist. Jongin walks them toward the living room, keeping his mouth on Baekhyun's the whole time. Baekhyun makes a small sound of surprise when his legs hit the couch and he falls back gracelessly onto the cushions. Jongin climbs over him, straddling his lap and wasting no time kissing him again.

Everything is happening so fast, Baekhyun's hands sliding under Jongin's shirt and up his back to hook over his shoulders, and Jongin feels dizzy. Jongin pulls away from Baekhyun's kisses to look at him and his heart skips at the way Baekhyun holds his gaze. His eyes are soft and shining and he's smiling so fondly and Jongin's heart squeezes in his chest. "You're so beautiful," he says, running his knuckles over Baekhyun's cheek and then cupping the side of his neck.

Baekhyun draws his bottom lip between his teeth and he drops his gaze to his lap before looking back up at Jongin. His smile slips and there's a hint of sadness in his eyes and Jongin feels panic rising in his chest. Baekhyun's hands slide down Jongin's back to rest at his waist and he rubs circles into Jongin's skin with his thumbs. "Why did you run away?"

"Because I'm stupid." He gives Baekhyun a weak smile, which Baekhyun returns. Jongins sweeps his thumb over Baekhyun's jaw and Baekhyun leans into his touch, reaching up to wrap his fingers around Jongins wrist. "It's been a long time since I've done this whole relationship thing. I got scared. I didn't want to not be enough for you."

"You're right," Baekhyun says, even as he lifts Jongin's hand to his lips, pressing a kiss to his palm. "You are stupid. You're more than enough, Jongin. You're everything I want. I tried to tell you at the wedding, but I guess I need to be more direct."

"I'm sorry."

"Stop apologizing and just kiss me again."

That is something Jongin thinks he can do. He holds Baekhyun's head in his hands, leaning in to kiss him softly. Baekhyun's fingers dig into Jongin's hip, the other hand disappearing into Jongin's hair as he licks at Jongin's lips. Jongin opens up for him, sighing as their tongues brush softly. He takes his time with it, savoring the feeling of Baekhyun's soft lips as they move against his own, the sharp pinch of his teeth as he nips a bit too hard.

Baekhyun tightens his hold on Jongin's hair, pulling slightly as he drags his lips from Jongin's mouth to trace along his jaw and Jongin lets out a soft sigh when Baekhyun's teeth scrape his skin. "Been wanting to do this for so long," Baekhyun breathes close to Jongin's ear and Jongin thinks of how they could have done this so many times already if he'd just acknowledged his feelings. It's happening now, though, and Jongin couldn't be happier, couldn't be more into the feeling of Baekhyun sucking a mark on his neck.

Baekhyun's arm snakes around Jongin's waist and in one swift move, he twists them until Jongin is on his back, his head resting against the armrest of the couch and Baekhyun hovering over him with a devilish grin. Jongin is both surprised by his strength and aroused by how easily Baekhyun had put him on his back. He fists his hand in the front of Baekhyun's shirt tugging him down until their mouths meet in a sloppy kiss.

When Baekhyun lowers himself to slot between Jongin's hips, Jongin moans into his mouth at the hardness of Baekhyun's dick pressed against his thigh. Baekhyun rocks slightly, his thigh pressing against Jongin's own cock, halfway to hard, and Jongin grinds down agains the pressure.

"Fuck, Jongin." Baekhyun pulls away from Jongin's kisses to nip at his collarbone and Jongin bares his neck for Baekhyun, wanting his mouth on it. "I want you so bad."

Heat explodes in Jongin's belly at how desperate and wrecked Baekhyun sounds already and he slides his hands down Baekhyun's back to his ass and squeezes, pushing his hips down to grind against Jongin in the process. They both moan and Baekhyun's teeth sink into Jongin's neck, just the right side of painful.

Jongin tries to grind himself against Baekhyun, but his leg keeps slipping off the couch and there's something digging into his back. "Can we-" he pants as Baekhyun sucks Jongin's earlobe into his mouth, rolling it between his teeth. "Can we move to your bed?"

Baekhyun pulls back to look down at him. "You want to?"

"Yeah. We don't have to do anything, if you don't want to, but I don't want to stop kissing you and there's something digging into my back. Plus your couch is too small." He smiles as Baekhyun laughs, climbing off him and helping him to his feet.

Baekhyun leads him back toward his bedroom and Jongin smacks his ass, playfully, laughing at Baekhyun's surprised shriek. Once inside the bedroom, Jongin wastes no time climbing into Baekhyun's bed and pulling him in after him. Baekhyun is on him again in no time, kissing him deeply. It's less frantic now, slow, languid kisses and Baekhyun's hand trailing down Jongin's side to dip under the hem of his shirt. Jongin threads his fingers through Baekhyun's hair losing himself in Baekhyun's mouth on his, Baekhyun's fingertips skating over his ribs, the soft sounds he makes when Jongin sucks on his bottom lip, teeth scraping over it. It's enough to have Jongin's skin flushing and his dick hardening between his legs.

"Jongin," Baekhyun says dazedly when he pulls away god knows how long later. He dips down to bump his nose against Jongin's and Jongin suppresses the urge to _giggle_ at how giddy he feels. A grin spreads on his face.

"Baekhyun."

Baekhyun props himself up on his elbow, reaching up with his free hand to brush his fingertips over Jongin's face as he _stares_ and Jongin feels vulnerable under the weight of his gaze. Now is the time when Jongin would usually panic, worried that things are moving too quickly, becoming too serious, but somehow with Baekhyun, he feels comfortable, _safe_. There's so much bubbling up in Jongin's chest, and he feels like he could float away if not for the weight of Baekhyun holding him down. "Where's your head?" Baekhyun's voice is gentle, coaxing Jongin’s focus back to the moment.

Jongin reaches up to slip his hand around the back of Baekhyun's neck, and he presses a soft, lingering kiss to Baekhyun's pink mouth. When they part, Baekhyun rests his forehead on Jongin's, his breath puffing hot on Jongin's face. "I really like you." Jongin says. "A _lot_. It's been a long time since I felt like this and it's so good but it's a little overwhelming."

"I really like you, too." Baekhyun kisses him. "A _lot_." He smiles against Jongin's mouth and Jongin's heart swells in his chest. "If you'll let me," Baekhyun trails his mouth from Jongin's lips across his jaw and down the side of his neck. "I'd like to show you." He tugs the collar of Jongin's shirt to the side so he can mouth at Jongin's shoulder and Jongin sighs.

"Please," Jongin breathes, "I want you."

Baekhyun growls at that, a sound that sends a spike of arousal straight to Jongin's dick. Baekhyun gets up on his knees and tugs his shirt up and over his head in one swift move, tossing it on the floor beside the bed before he's helping Jongin out of his own shirt. Baekhyun begins a slow trail of kisses from Jongin's neck down his chest, stopping to flick his tongue over Jongin's nipple, and Jongin arches against it, tangling his fingers in Baekhyun's silky hair. Baekhyun's tongue circles the hardened bud before he scrapes his teeth over it and Jongin's dick stirs in his pants.

Baekhyun continues lavishing Jongin's body with kisses, sucking marks on his stomach and letting his teeth nip at Jongin's ribs. Baekhyun looks up at Jongin as he leaves a trail of soft, open-mouthed kisses across Jongin's stomach, just above the waistband of his pants and Jongin shifts his hips, sighing as his dick brushes along Baekhyun's chest. "You're gorgeous," Baekhyun praises as he slides his hands up Jongin's sides to thumb at his nipples, and Jongin thinks Baekhyun doesn't look so bad himself, with his pink cheeks and swollen lips and dark eyes that seem to hold so much in them. When Baekhyun drags his hands back down Jongin's torso, he stops at Jongin's hips, rubbing circles with his thumbs as he leaves a sloppy kiss just below Jongin's navel. "Can I take these off?" He rubs his nose just above the waistband of Jongin's pants and it's unfair how Baekhyun can make that look so hot.

Jongin nods, drawing his bottom lip between his teeth. Baekhyun's fingers swiftly undo the button of Jongin's pants and tug down the zipper and Jongin lifts his hips as Baekhyun rids him of his pants. His pants join their shirts on the floor and Baekhyun slides his hands up Jongin's thighs, urging them apart. Baekhyun's mouth is hanging open, his eyes roaming over Jongin's body and Jongin can feel his chest flushing, creeping up into his cheeks.

"God, you're really so fucking beautiful." He muses before surging up to kiss Jongin, slipping his hand between their bodies to palm Jongin through his underwear. Jongin bucks into the warmth of his hand, moaning into his mouth as Baekhyun applies more pressure, digging the heel of his hand into the base of Jongin's cock as his fingers massage Jongin's balls and _fuck_ that feels so good Jongin thinks he could come just from that alone.

When Baekhyun's hand dips into Jongin's underwear to wrap around his cock, Jongin sinks his teeth into Baekhyun's lip, his hips jerking. "Feels good," Jongin pants, his nails scraping down Baekhyun's back.

"I can make you feel better," Baekhyun whispers before leaving a trail of heated kisses down the front of Jongin until he reaches Jongin's underwear. He presses a kiss to the head of Jongin's cock where it presses against the front of his briefs and Jongin bucks into it.

"Take them off." Jongin knows he sounds desperate, but that's okay, because he _is_. He wants nothing more than to feel Baekhyun's mouth on him, to sink his fingers into Baekhyun's hair as he sucks Jongin off.

"Are you sure?"

"Please."

Baekhyun wastes no time tugging Jongin's underwear down his legs and throwing them to the side. He presses a kiss to Jongin's thigh before taking him in his hand, just running his fingertips over Jongin's length, his touch featherlight, barely there, until Jongin is shaking, begging him to do _something_ \- he needs more.

Baekhyun takes mercy on him, circling his fingers around the base of Jongin's cock and stroking once, twice, before licking a stripe up the underside. Jongin's head falls back onto the pillows and his fingers tangle in Baekhyun's hair when the head of his cock disappears between Baekhyun's lips. He sucks lightly, running his tongue around the crown and over the slit.

Jongin squeezes his eyes closed so hard that stars explode behind his eyelids when Baekhyun sinks down on his length, not stopping until his lips are wrapped around the base of Jongin's dick. The head of Jongin's cock is down Baekhyun's throat and Jongin would be amazed by that fact if he wasn't overwhelmed by how fucking _good_ it feels to have Baekhyun's throat squeezing around him.

"Oh _fuck_ ," Jongin moans, trying to keep his hips still as Baekhyun's throat works around his dick, his tongue flattened against the underside, while he bobs shallowly and the pressure of it all is dizzying. Jongin thinks it might all be over too soon if Baekhyun keeps going like this so he fists his hands in Baekhyun's hair tugging lightly until Baekhyun pulls off, panting, his eyes red and watery. "Come here."

Baekhyun crawls over him, brushing Jongin's hair off his forehead before kissing him, slow and deep. Jongin's hands run over Baekhyun's back and down the back of his sweatpants and he groans against Baekhyun's mouth when he realizes Baekhyun isn't wearing anything beneath them. "Let me-" Baekhyun gasps into Jongin's open mouth. He attempts to shove his pants down his legs without pulling away from Jongin's kisses, and they both struggle for a moment before Baekhyun's pants join the rest of their clothes strewn across the floor.

Baekhyun lowers himself between Jongin's legs, and thrusts forward, his cock slipping between Jongin's cheeks for a moment before running up over his balls and dragging over his own lenght, and a spark of excitement zips up Jongin's spine. He thinks of how much he wants Baekhyun's dick filling his ass, but that's for another time. Right now, he reaches down between their bodies to close his hand around both of them. Baekhyun whimpers, thrusting into Jongin's fist, and everything is so slick and hot and too much and Jongin lets out a loud moan of Baekhyun's name as he tightens his grip.

They build a sort of rhythm, Jongin thrusting into the circle of his fingers as Baekhyun pulls out and Jongin can feel how close he is to the edge. It's been so long since he's been with someone like this and Baekhyun is so _hot_ and he wants him _so much_ and it's all too good. "Baekhyun," he moans breathlessly, his hand squeezing around their cocks as they slide slick against each other.

"Jongin, fuck-" is all the warning Jongin gets before Baekhyun is coming, painting Jongin's chest and stomach in hot white streaks. His cock pulses in Jongin's hand and he buries his face in Jongin's neck as he rocks through his orgasm, whimpering when Jongin runs his palm over the head of Baekhyun's cock. It just takes a few more pumps before Jongin is coming, too, adding to the mess between them.

Baekhyun is a sticky, heavy weight, but Jongin welcomes it, wrapping his arms around him and kissing the top of his head.

"You're getting cum on my back." Baekhyun whines against his shoulder.

"Shit, sorry. What should i-"

Baekhyun lifts himself off of Jongin, reaching over to his nightstand to grab a tissue and cleaning Jongin's hand for him, he ignores the mess on Jongin's chest and tummy, but Jongin doesn't mind, distracting himself with kissing Baekhyun's red, kiss-swollen lips. It's a soft, lazy, languid kiss and Baekhyun hums into it, curling his fingers into Jongin's hair and scratching at his scalp. When he pulls away a moment later he gives Jongin a soft smile. "I meant what I said," he says, his voice scratchy. "You're more than enough for me. I want you just as you are."

Jongin's heart swells and warmth washes over him and he can feel his eyelids growing heavy. He presses a kiss to Baekhyun's lips, whispering "I love you," before drifting off to sleep.

Jongin wakes a few hours later to a warm weight pressed to his side. Baekhyun's arm is draped over him, his face pressed to Jongin's neck and Jongin is overwhelmed by a rush of affection for the sleeping man beside him. He presses a kiss to the top of Baekhyun's head and Baekhyun stirs, whimpering softly and it's so adorable that Jongin can't help but chuckle. He thinks for a moment that he's woken Baekhyun, but he just hums in his sleep, tightening his hold around Jongin's middle. Jongin cards his fingers through Baekhyun's hair feeling like the luckiest man alive.



“I can’t believe you faked a relationship at my wedding.” Yixing is frozen in a look of shock, his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open. Beside him, Jongdae cackles, leaning into his side.

It had been Jongin’s idea to invite the newlyweds over for dinner. He had made good on his promise of keeping in touch and he thought it was only fair to let Yixing know of their little charade.

“It’s such a good story, though.” Baekhyun says, smiling up at Jongin from where he’s draped over his lap. “One to tell the grandkids.”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Jongin warns, even as he rests his hand on Baekhyun’s side, rubbing affectionately. It’s been a month since Jongin’s confession and it hasn’t been perfect, Jongin still has moments of self-doubt, but Baekhyun is there to reassure him with his words and gentle kisses.

“I’m happy for you guys” Yixing says once the shock has worn off.

“We’re happy too,” Baekhyun covers Jongin’s hand with his own, threading their fingers together.

It’s true. It’s been a long time since Jongin has felt this happy. He knows it’s not going to be perfect, not always this easy, but for the first time, Jongin thinks it’s worth it.


End file.
